HBO Orders Late-Night Series Game Theory With Bomani Jones

HBO announced on Thursday that it has ordered Game Theory With Bomani Jones, a weekly, late-night series hosted by Emmy award-winning sports journalist and commentator Bomani Jones. The show will examine the issues impacting the sports world. Production is set to begin in New York in 2022.

Jones currently contributes to Bob Costas’ HBO interview show Back on the Record which premiered in July. He has appeared in the HBO Sports documentaries The Battle for Tobacco Road: Duke vs. Carolina and Runnin’ Rebels. But he is probably most associated with his work on ESPN which includes co-hosting Highly Questionable and High Noon and contributions to Outside The Lines, in addition to providing insightful and nuanced commentary on his podcast The Right Time with Bomani Jones.

“This is, literally, my professional dream, to have a show like this one on HBO,” said Jones in a statement. “I’d feel that way with anyone behind it, but working with a top-notch group like Seth, Stu, Todd, Adam and Nina has me more excited than I can express. We have a chance to do something that hasn’t been done before, and I can’t wait to share our work with the world.”

Adam McKay will serve as an executive producer on the show. The former Saturday Night Live head writer and mastermind behind comedy films Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004), Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006), and Step Brothers (2008) has wanted to team up with Jones for a long time.

“I have been dying to work with Bomani for years now,” said McKay. “He’s one of the sharpest and funniest truth tellers anywhere in the sports world.”

“Bomani is one of the most unique journalists working today,” said Nina Rosenstein, executive vice president of programming, HBO. “He’s someone who gets that sports stories are often about race, politics, economics and gender, and sees a wider view that goes beyond what happens on the field. We are thrilled to be able to work with him and know that Game Theory will deliver provocative, insightful and funny stories that you don’t hear too often in popular media.”

The news comes amid speculation about Jones’ future at ESPN. The New York Post’s Andrew Marchand reported in his weekly newsletter SportsClicker that Jones is unlikely to renew his contract with the network when it expires in March.

Game Theory With Bomani Jones is executive produced by Jones, McKay, Stuart Miller, Seth Weitberg as well as Todd Schulman from Hyperobject Industries.